While most people would agree that "Going Green" is good for the environment and can even save money, many people don't realize just how much value can be created. For example have you ever considered how much changing lights to efficient LED lighting can add to your bottom line? Or, take it a step further. If that bottom line is associated with a property, upgrading to energy efficiency lighting not only reduces energy costs and increases profits, but also has a direct impact on the value of the property.

To better illustrate this, let's take a look at a real world example. When Leading Edge Designs recently audited a shopping center that had 120 parking lot lights and 50 wall pack lights, we estimated that the owner could decrease their operating costs by about 20% because of the energy savings and reduced energy costs. At this location, that savings translates into nearly $600k increase in value of the property. To put it in other terms, they could realize a 400% return on an investment of 150k.

What's really amazing about this estimate is that it is extremely conservative. It does not account for any increases in energy costs (typically 3-5% per year), only considers the outdoor lights for the buildings, and does not focus on additional savings from reduced management efforts. Further, this does not include additional options that could reduce the energy consumed such dimming and motion detection technologies that leverage the instant on / off characteristics of LED lighting.

Author

Bill Motsko is an Executive supporting Leading Edge Designs (LED). Our team has been providing lighting solutions and helping our clients overcome lights challenges for more than 9 years with a cost-effective, custom approach focused on understanding your needs and providing the most efficient solution. We're passionate about helping to reduce energy costs, while shedding a little light on LED / solid state lighting...